5/26/2017 DifferentialEquationsExactEquations

ExactDifferentialEquations
Thenexttypeoffirstorderdifferentialequationsthatwellbelookingatisexactdifferentialequations.
Beforewegetintothefulldetailsbehindsolvingexactdifferentialequationsitsprobablybesttoworkan
examplethatwillhelptoshowusjustwhatanexactdifferentialequationis.Itwillalsoshowsomeofthe
behindthescenesdetailsthatweusuallydontbotherwithinthesolutionprocess.

Thevastmajorityofthefollowingexamplewillnotbedoneinanyoftheremainingexamplesandthework
thatwewillputintotheremainingexampleswillnotbeshowninthisexample.Thewholepointbehindthis
exampleistoshowyoujustwhatanexactdifferentialequationis,howweusethisfacttoarriveatasolution
andwhytheprocessworksasitdoes.Themajorityoftheactualsolutiondetailswillbeshowninalater
example.

Example1Solvethefollowingdifferentialequation.

Solution
Letsstartoffbysupposingthatsomewhereoutthereintheworldisa
function(x,y)thatwecanfind.Forthisexamplethefunctionthatwe
needis


Donotworryatthispointaboutwherethisfunctioncamefromand
howwefoundit.Findingthefunction,(x,y),thatisneededforany
particulardifferentialequationiswherethevastmajorityofthework
fortheseproblemslies.Asstatedearlierhowever,thepointofthis
exampleistoshowyouwhythesolutionprocessworksratherthan
showingyoutheactualsolutionprocess.Wewillseehowtofindthis
functioninthenextexample,soatthispointdonotworryabouthowto
findit,simplyacceptthatitcanbefoundandthatwevedonethatfor
thisparticulardifferentialequation.

Now,takesomepartialderivativesofthefunction.

http://tutorial.math.lamar.edu/Classes/DE/Exact.aspx 1/1